Regarding "level of nonsense that is beyond redemption":
it seems that it all boils down to 2 questions for which different parties obviously have different answers:
1) is "re-writing code" in this way actually "copying code" or it's not?
2) is similarity of Houdini's output to Robbo's output explainable by something else than copying code or there is no other explanation?
Some quotations from the past (from OpenChess) and a random screenshot:
Here is a direct and easy question for you: Did you write Houdini from scratch, i.e. is it all your own code?
—Sean Evans
To answer your direct and easy question with a direct and easy answer,
Houdini is all my development, and I've always given due credit in the
readme file, on the web site, and in the various forums.
—Robert Houdart
Robert you certainly did a fine job with Houdini..It is very strong and is beating Rybka 4 on my machine - What I don't understand is why not make the simple statement: I took the ippolit sources, studied them, and made changes to produce what we have now.
Is there anything wrong with saying that? Isn't that a bit more honest? Are you claiming that there is absolutely no identical code between ippolit
and houdini, and/or that houdini is not derived from ippolit at all?
—Charles
Because the simple fact is that this is not an accurate description of how Houdini was created.
—Robert Houdart
Robert Houdart said "...Houdini is all my development...". There should not be any doubt about the usual interpretation of the statement - that it is an original work written from scratch without any cut-and-paste from any illegitimate sources (here usually mean Ipp*).
It is not unusual that a person write an "original" program with the strength of Houdini - there is nothing more really original after the Ippo* codes was released . Just as Osipov Yuri rewrote Fruit in bitboard,
a person also could "rewrite" Ippo* cloning most of search and evaluation to start with. Such a program is, in some consideration, completely original. If I were to write a commercial chess engine for money, this is how I would start.
—Chan Rasjid
Is this you statement then:
"Houdini is all my development, and I've always given due credit in the readme file, on the web site, and in the various forums. ?"
Because that implies to me that you designed Houdini from the ground up, and
only absorbing ideas from ippolit and others.
That would also imply that there is no (or very little) identical code ...
Would you agree with my above conclusions from your earlier statement?
—Charles
Exact, I have never claimed otherwise. [...] Also
Rasjid's previous post is quite accurate.
—Robert Houdart
Even a non-programmer like myself can see that it's a modified Robolito chess engine....I mean you must be a plain idiot to refuse to see the truth....
—Dr.Wael Deeb
.